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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-062-06/04/2002-MAKING AMENDMENTS TO THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MANUAL AND ESTABLISHING POLICIES RELATING TO THE REC RESOLUTION 2002-062 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS MAKING AMENDMENTS TO THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MANUAL AND ESTABLISHING POLICIES RELATING TO THE RECRUITMENT AND APPOINTMENT PROCESS FOR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS WHEREAS, the City currently has several boards and commissions appointed by the City Council; and WHEREAS,the information pertaining to membership lists,descriptions of each board and commission, meeting schedules, conflict of interest guidelines, appeal procedures, and general information regarding membership limitations,attendance policies and other responsibilities of the City's boards and commissions is contained in a Boards and Commissions Manual(the"Manual"), maintained by the City Clerk, which Manual was last adopted by the City Council by Resolution 2001-26; and WHEREAS,Resolution 2001-26 requires that amendments to the Manual which constitute policy changes shall be made only by the Council by resolution, except that changes that are consistent with resolutions and ordinances adopted by the Council may be made administratively by the City Clerk's Office; and WHEREAS,the Council Governance Committee has recently recommended certain changes to the membership requirements and limitations contained in the Manual; and WHEREAS, the Governance Committee has also recommended changes to the provisions relating to the preparation ofineeting minutes in an effort to provide the Council with comprehensive information documenting discussions of individual boards and commissions,particularly with regard to dissenting opinions; and WHEREAS,the Governance Committee has also recommended changes to the recruitment and appointment process for boards and commissions; and WHEREAS, the Council wishes to adopt the changes recommended by the Governance Committee. NOW, THEREFORE,BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That the provisions relating to Membership Limitations, as contained on page 8 in the Boards and Commissions Manual dated January 2002,are hereby amended to read as follows: Membership Limitations The following limitations and requirements are applied to board or commission membership: No person may serve on any one board or commission for more than two consecutive three-year terms. In the event that an individual fills the unexpired term of a board or commission member,that unexpired term shall be counted as a complete term if the remainder of the unexpired term (from date of appointment to term expiration date) exceeds 24 months. The foregoing shall become effective August 1, 2002 and shall not affect any individual during his or her current term, but shall be taken into consideration for the purpose of determining eligibility for reappointment. No person will be appointed by the City Council to serve concurrently on more than one board or commission. All persons appointed to,or serving on,any board or commission shall be registered voters (except those under 18 years of age) and shall reside within the Fort Collins Growth Management Area for at least one year. Any member who relocates outside of the Growth Management Area during his or her term of service on a board or commission, shall resign his or her membership. These requirements shall apply to all individuals appointed, or reappointed, after August 1, 2002 and shall not apply to applicants for or members of the General Employees Retirement Committee. Section 2. That the provisions relating to the preparation of meeting minutes, as contained on pages 19 through 21 in the Boards and Commissions Manual dated January 2002, are hereby amended to read as follows: Minutes Minutes must be taken of any meeting of a board or commission(or committee of a board or commission) at which the adoption of any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, regulation, or formal action occurs or could occur. The minutes must be open to public inspection and a copy must be filed with the City Clerk upon approval. Section 2-73 of the City Code requires that approval of minutes shall occur no later than the next regular meeting of the board,commission or committee,except in those instances when an audio or video recording has been made and maintained. Discussions that occur in an executive session shall be subject to the same audio recording requirements and related procedures and regulations as are contained in§2- 33 of the City Code pertaining to executive sessions of the City Council and its committees. The minutes of a meeting during which an executive session is held shall reflect the topic of the discussion at the executive session. Except with regard to the documentation of executive sessions, state law and City Code do not prescribe the level of detail to be contained in the minutes.As provided in the City Code, minutes of executive sessions are not taken. However, the City Code does require that the executive session be tape recorded in most circumstances (see"Executive Sessions"for more details). At a minimum,the minutes of a meeting should contain the following information: Date, time and location of the meeting. Listing of members present and a statement that such members constituted a quorum. General outline of each major topic discussed, considered, and the outcome. Comments of individual board members which explain the individual's viewpoints and opinions. Verbatim(to the extent possible)recital of all motions along with the recording of how each member voted on each motion. Statements made by individual board members in support of their vote. (Note: it is especially important that board members state, and the minutes reflect, reasons for dissenting opinions.) Detailed recital of all formal action taken. If a motion is made to go into executive session, the minutes must reflect the topic for the executive session in as much detail as possible without compromising the purpose for which the executive session is to be held. The specific citation to the provision of the City Code that authorizes the board or commission to meet in executive session, as well as the vote on the motion, must be carefully documented. (See next section on executive sessions.) Additionally, the time of convening and adjourning the executive session should be noted. Time of adjournment. In situations where the board or commission is acting in a quasi-judicial manner or is otherwise conducting an important or controversial meeting, the minutes of a meeting may not be sufficient to adequately record the events of the meeting. In those situations, City staff or the City Attorney's Office may recommend that the meeting be electronically recorded or recorded with the assistance of a court reporter. Even in this situation, minutes should still be taken as the electronic recording or stenographer's notes may never be transcribed. OOM%k. Approval of Minutes Any additions,deletions,or corrections to the minutes should be presented by board and staff members. A motion should be made and seconded to approve the minutes of the last meeting as amended. The approved minutes should be signed by the chairperson and secretary of the board or commission. Discussion Items While the minutes should be as accurate as possible,the secretary is not required to record every remark made at the meeting. The secretary should not make the minutes a verbatim transcript. The minutes should include a description of each item being discussed. Listing questions and answers during discussion of each item is not necessary; however, comments that summarize board member positions on each item should be included as support for each board member's vote on each issue. (Note: It is important that the minutes reflect the reasons for dissenting votes.) The exact wording of any motion made should be included in the minutes, and the maker and second of the motion should be noted. If the motion is approved or defeated unanimously, such should be noted. If the vote on a motion is split, the record should reflect those voting in favor of the motion and those voting against the motion. NOTE: Special matters --such as annexation and zoning hearings -- may require considerably more detail. Items being forwarded for City Council consideration should also include more detail. Adjournment Recording adjournment of a meeting in the minutes is advisable, since it indicates whether the meeting was finally adjourned,or adjourned to another time prior to the next regular meeting. The adjournment should specify the time the meeting was adjourned, and if the meeting was adjourned to a later date and hour. Filing and Distribution of Minutes Written minutes of board and commission meetings are considered permanent records of the municipality. The Code of the City of Fort Collins requires boards and commissions to file minutes with the City Clerk for incorporation into the records of the municipality. In addition to the signed copy , an electronic version should be provided to the City Clerk which will be uploaded to the website. Four copies of the minutes should also be provided to the City Manager's Office for distribution to the Mayor, Council Liaison, City Manager and the media. Tape recordings do not take the place of written minutes and should be used only in preparation of minutes. It is recommended that tape recordings of meetings be retained at least until the minutes are approved, and ideally for 2 to 3 months. Minutes shall be taken of any meeting of any board or commission of the city,or any committee of such board or commission, at which the adoption of any proposed policy,position,resolution,rule,regulation or formal action occurs or could occur. Such minutes shall be open to public inspection and shall be filed with the City Clerk upon approval by such board,commission or committee. Such approval shall occur no later than the next regular meeting of the board,commission or committee,except in those instances when an audio or video recording has been made and maintained by the City of the board, commission or committee meeting which is the subject of the minutes. The minutes of a meeting during which an executive session is held shall reflect the general topic of the discussion at the executive session. Section 3. That the Council hereby establishes the following policies relating to the recruitment and appointment process for boards and commissions: • Individuals shall be limited to applying for membership on no more than two (2)boards or commissions. • Applications received after the application deadline established by the City Clerk's Office will not be considered for current vacancies, but must be placed on file for a period of one (1) year for consideration in the event of future vacancies. • Prior to the expiration date of an incumbent's term, an incumbent seeking reappointment must file with the City Clerk's Office a statement of intent to seek reappointment, in lieu of a full application, on or before the deadline established by the City Clerk for filing such statement of intent. If an incumbent fails to file said statement of intent prior to the deadline established by the City Clerk, the incumbent's position on the board or commission will be considered to be vacant upon completion of the incumbent's term. • Incumbents seeking reappointment shall not be required to interview for reappointment unless the Council Liaison requests an interview. • Incumbents shall be given preference in determining appointments to boards and commissions unless an incumbent, during his or her tenure as a board member,has violated any provisions of the City Charter or City Code,or any policies relating to boards and commissions as may be established by the City Council. • The City Clerk's Office shall create advertising materials which accurately reflect which boards and commissions will have vacancies and which boards are accepting applications solely for the purpose of establishing eligibility lists for future vacancies. Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins held this 4th day of.June, A.D. 2002. Mayor A TEST: A t l �A L City Clerk